1/80. Carotid ligation for carotid aneurysms.Thirty patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage due to rupture of a carotid aneurysm were treated by ligation of the common carotid artery. Two patients died as a result of the procedure, two patients developed persisting hemisphere deficit. Eight of the ten patients who developed cerebral ischemia after the operation were operated within ten days after the bleeding. At present out aim is to guide the patient safely through the first ten days after his haemorrhage and perform ligation at the end of the second week. After a follow up period of 1-8 years recurrent haemorrhage did not occur. Common carotid ligation, preferably with control of carotid artery end pressure, cerebral blood-flow and EEG is considered to be a valuable method to treat ruptured intracranial carotid aneurysm.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/80. Transient cardiac standstill induced by adenosine in the management of intraoperative aneurysmal rupture: technical case report.OBJECTIVE AND IMPORTANCE: Intraoperative aneurysmal rupture represents a potentially catastrophic event. We describe the use of an intravenous adenosine bolus to induce transient cardiac asystole to control a severe intraoperative aneurysmal rupture. This treatment resulted in a brief period of severe hypotension, which enabled successful clipping of the aneurysm. CLINICAL PRESENTATION: A 55-year-old man was referred to our institution 7 days after experiencing a mild subarachnoid hemorrhage from a fusiform, multilobulated aneurysm of the anterior communicating artery. The patient was found to have multiple additional fusiform aneurysms as well as a large parietal arteriovenous malformation. INTERVENTION: A craniotomy was performed to clip the aneurysm, but surgical dissection was complicated by premature rebleeding that could not be controlled satisfactorily with tamponade or temporary arterial occlusion. Infusion of adenosine resulted in the rapid onset of profound hypotension, allowing for safe completion of the dissection and clipping of the aneurysm with a good outcome. There were no complications identified in relation to the use of adenosine. CONCLUSION: In the setting of severe intraoperative aneurysmal rupture, intravenous adenosine represents a potential means of achieving a near-immediate profound decrease in the blood pressure that may allow for safe completion of the dissection and aneurysm clipping.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/80. Carotid artery ectasia coexistent with primary open angle glaucoma.A 60-year-old smoker presented with high intraocular pressure in the right eye with a right afferent pupil defect and visual field suggestive of primary open angle glaucoma in the right eye only, when an examination 2 years earlier had revealed no hint of ocular pathology. Radiological investigations demonstrated prominent ectasia of the internal carotid arteries extending into the proximal middle cerebral arteries. The changes in the carotids extended throughout the cavernous sinus regions, encroached on the under surface of the optic chiasm and were closely related to the internal aspects of both optic canals. In primary open angle glaucoma management, neural imaging is not normally recommended; however, neural imaging investigations should be considered if the presentation is not typical of a chronic bilateral optic neuropathy- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/80. Intra-aortic counterpulsation during carotid stenting.Postprocedural hypotension following endovascular stent placement of carotid artery disease (CAS) predicts increased in-hospital complications and long-term risk of death. Intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation (IABP) both increases mean arterial pressure and cerebral blood flow and therefore possibly reduces complications due to hemodynamic instability during and after CAS. In this study, we describe the use of IABP in a patient with severe depression of left ventricular function due to diffuse coronary artery disease undergoing CAS. Controlled studies are necessary to demonstrate a potentially protective role of IABP in high-risk CAS patients.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/80. An autopsy case of hemilaterally dominant and systematic/extensive border zone infarction: sequela of preceding atherosclerotic obstruction of one common carotid artery followed by repeated episodes of systemic hypotension.A 68-year-old man was admitted to St Marianna University Hospital on account of loss of consciousness with left hemiplegia. During the hospital recovery course with a rehabilitation procedure, the patient's blood pressure was very unstable, fluctuating between high (210/110 mmHg) and low (110/70 mmHg) values accompanied by a fainting sensation. A second stroke of left hemiplegia took place 1 month later. Afterwards, his condition worsened to tetraplegia with dysarthria. Three months later, lung cancer with multiple metastasis including his left neck was found and he died from adynamic ileus 6 months after the onset of the present illness. autopsy revealed nearly complete atheromatous obstruction and more than 50% stenosis, respectively, of his right common and internal/external carotid arteries. His intracranial arterial trunks and main branches were all patent with localized atherosclerosis of only moderate degree. The pathology of the brain existed predominantly in the right hemisphere in the border zone area between the anterior and middle cerebral arteries systematically with numerous disseminated foci of complete or incomplete necrosis, white matter and gray matter being involved independently. Involvement of centrum semiovale white matter is more extensive and intensive than that of gray matter. Of the gray matter, cerebral cortex as well as striatum, periventricular (the third ventricle) gray and cerebellar cortex was involved. The specific characteristic topography and distribution of the lesions together with their histopathology are described in detail with illustration. It is concluded that this case represents an outstanding example of hemodynamic cerebral circulatory insufficiency doubly caused by hemilateral carotid artery stenosis and repeated episodes of systemic hypotension.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/80. Carotid endarterectomy: Is a shunt necessary?Seventy-seven carotid endarterectomies performed on fifty-nine patients, using induced systemic hypertension during carotid artery clamping, were reviewed. The risk of cerebral ischemia is reduced to a minimum by this technic. The measurement of the internal carotid artery stump pressure is an excellent guideline for the need of additional brain protection. An internal shunt is rarely necessary. Thromboembolic phenomena contributed to the major neurologic complications encountered (two deaths and one stroke). Extreme gentleness and careful surgical technic cannot be overemphasized.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/80. baroreflex failure as a late sequela of neck irradiation.Combined chemotherapy and radiotherapy increase long-term survival in patients with head and neck tumors. Late complications of treatment, however, are being recognized increasingly. Surgery or radiotherapy of the carotid sinuses or brain stem can evoke labile hypertension and orthostatic intolerance from acute or subacute baroreflex failure. Here we report cases in which chronic baroreflex failure appeared to develop as a late sequela of neck irradiation. Three patients referred for autonomic nervous system function testing had labile blood pressure and chronic orthostatic intolerance that developed years after neck irradiation for cancer. In each patient, heart rate remained constant during performance of the valsalva maneuver, suggesting baroreflex-cardiovagal failure. All 3 patients had virtually zero baroreflex-cardiovagal gain, quantified by interbeat interval-systolic blood pressure relationships after intravenous phenylephrine or nitroglycerine. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring revealed highly variable blood pressure, with sudden pressor and depressor episodes, a characteristic feature of baroreflex failure. Cardiovagal efferent function, assessed by power spectral analysis of heart rate variability during slow, deep respiration, was normal. Sympathetic noradrenergic efferent function, assessed by cold pressor testing and plasma catecholamine levels during supine rest and orthostasis, was also normal or increased. These findings indicated a primarily afferent lesion. Carotid ultrasonography revealed intimal thickening and atheromatous plaques in all 3 patients. We propose that labile hypertension and orthostatic intolerance can develop as a late sequela of neck irradiation, due to chronic carotid baroreflex failure, which in turn is due to radiation-induced accelerated development of carotid arteriosclerosis. Splinting of carotid sinus mechanoreceptors in rigidified arterial walls would impede detection of alterations in blood pressure and thereby disrupt baroreflex regulation of cardiovagal and sympathetic outflows.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/80. brain stem and cerebellar dysfunction after lumbar spinal fluid drainage: case report.Lumbar spinal fluid drainage is a common procedure to reduce the risks of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) fistula after skull base fractures or various transdural neurosurgical procedures. Nevertheless, this simple and effective technique can lead to overdrainage and CSF hypovolaemia. This report describes the case of a young patient who had a lumbar drain inserted, to avoid CSF fistula after a pterional craniotomy with opening of the frontal sinus for the clipping of a ruptured aneurysm. The drain was removed after 48 hours because of underdrainage (<1 ml/h). Three days after drain removal, she developed rapid deterioration of her level of consciousness and signs of cranial nerves involvement, brain stem and cerebellar dysfunction. intracranial pressure was low (<5 cm H(2)O) and MRI showed brain sagging and cerebellar foramen magnum herniation. The patient was successfully treated with epidural blood patch, ventricular drainage, and Trendelenburg position. The authors report this case because CSF hypovolaemia attributable to lumbar overdrainage is an insidious and threatening condition not easy to diagnose in the absence of detectable CSF leak. MRI and intracranial pressure monitoring confirm the diagnosis and permit better understanding of the physiopathology of brain sagging.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/80. Significance of low perfusion with increased oxygen extraction fraction in a case of internal carotid artery stenosis.BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Decreased cerebral blood flow with an increased oxygen extraction fraction, the so-called misery perfusion syndrome, suggests a vulnerability to reduction in cerebral perfusion pressure and a tendency to develop cerebral infarction. It is uncertain, however, whether the infarct would occur in the brain region specifically exhibiting this condition. CASE DESCRIPTION: We report the case of a patient with right intracranial internal carotid artery stenosis who presented with mild left hemiparesis resulting from a right frontal watershed infarct. Positron emission tomography 2 months after the stroke showed decreased cerebral blood flow with an increased oxygen extraction fraction in noninfarcted areas of the affected hemisphere. Maximal changes were detected in the watershed area between the middle cerebral artery and the posterior cerebral artery. Three months later, while on antiplatelet therapy, he suffered a new infarct in the right temporo-occipital watershed area that had shown the highest oxygen extraction fraction value on the first positron emission tomographic study. One month after the recurrence of stroke, a second study showed that low perfusion with increased oxygen extraction fraction persisted in the affected hemisphere to a lesser degree than in the first study. CONCLUSIONS: This observation suggests that the area of low perfusion exhibiting the highest oxygen extraction fraction has the highest risk for infarction. Increased oxygen extraction fraction may be an important factor in the development of hemodynamic infarction.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/80. Bilateral axillobrachial and external carotid artery manifestation of giant cell arteritis: important role of color duplex ultrasonography in the diagnosis.A 76-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with vertigo. Previously he had been extensively examined because of an increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate without any clinical symptoms. physical examination revealed 60 mmHg blood pressure difference between the two arms. color duplex ultrasound examination revealed bilateral extreme narrowing of the external carotid and axillobrachial artery with a dark, hypo-echoic halo around the lumen. This condition was recognized as a specific sign for giant cell arteritis (GCA), described originally in cases of temporal arteritis. The diagnosis was confirmed by biopsy of the temporal artery. In contrast to the typical cranial form of GCA -- our patient showed an unusual, bilateral large-vessel manifestation. The diagnosis was based on ultrasound images rather than on symptoms that characterize the well-known temporal form. This observation emphasizes the role of color duplex ultrasonography in the diagnosis and follow-up of GCA.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = pressure (Clic here for more details about this article) |
| | Next -> |